Chapter 134: Elf (3)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 134: Elf (3)
“The warlocks are making something using the World Tree?”
“Yes.”
Uncle Aeryun had a grave expression on his face, but I wasn't particularly surprised.
I’d already heard everything from Boradori.
To think that guy would actually be useful. This is the true perk of being a reincarnator who knows the original story.
“The elf delegation believes the golem that appeared this time was merely made from the byproducts of that process.”
However, this was news even to Boradori.
Did they just use the scraps left over from whatever they were making?
No, considering it’s the World Tree, it’s probably less like 'scraps' and more like the gold dust produced while crafting jewelry.
It seemed they had cleverly gathered that dust and applied it to the golem’s armor.
“Therefore…”
I tuned out Uncle Aeryun’s words.
Because of the Wood Style Rangers' wooden golems, one might expect small wooden golems made from the World Tree or wooden suits like Iron M*n, but the actual result would be completely different.
According to Boradori, they used it as a catalyst for casting spells or for buffing staves.
That’s right.
The warlocks who would soon descend upon the Academy were traditional mages.
And unlike the ones we'd faced so far, they were the type to summon beings from another world!
Well, even if they were 'otherworldly,' they were still very much fantasy-esque creatures, not something from the modern world or sci-fi.
To the people living in this actual fantasy world, however, they were entities never seen before, so they were perceived as truly fantastical.
Of course, regardless of their power, they were the type of enemies you could defeat as long as you memorized their specific patterns.
Unlike the original work, where the protagonist had to learn those patterns through trial and error, we had Mr. Boradori here, making them enemies we could easily overcome.
In fact, Boradori herself was practically salivating at the thought of the World Tree items and materials the warlocks would drop.
So, all we had to do was wait for the enemy to show up and finish it quickly, but…
“So, we plan to form a joint investigation team.”
Because the elves had stuck their noses in, things had become annoying.
“Why?”
“…Were you even listening to me?”
I wasn't.
However, showing that would be the mark of an amateur.
“No, I mean, this is the Empire’s business, so why should we…”
“……”
A pro simply shifts all the responsibility onto the Empire.
The reason for forming the investigation team was due to a strong request from the other party.
And that party was, naturally, the elves.
The name: The Elf & Empire Joint Investigation Team!
Normally, the Empire is the type to put its own name first, so it would have been the Empire & Elf Joint Investigation Team.
—You youngsters are far younger than us!
It seemed even the Empire had to take a step back when faced with old fogeys who compared their ages not just as individuals, but against the age of the Empire itself.
So, naturally, I ran away.
Or more accurately, everyone except for two members of the After-School Dessert Club ran away.
—Why should we do that?
—Elves are a bit…
—Fla— I mean, Marie. Didn't you say Dale plans to stay on good terms with the elves?
—You were going to call me a Fire Spammer, weren't you? My feelings are hurt. I’m not doing it.
—There’s no reason for us to do such a bothersome task.
—Taylor, you bastard! How many times do I have to tell you that you’re from the Empire!
I offered a silent prayer as I watched Uncle Aeryun’s weary back as he dragged the resisting Taylor away.
“Pardon?”
“I’ve been put in charge of guiding the elves. So, please help me out.”
I never expected the crisis of being dragged away to find me like this.
“Good luck with that.”
“Aren't you being a bit too cold?!”
Senior Loreliya made a tearful face, but an agent must always remain stoic.
“I told Uncle Aeryun this too, but why should I join the Empire’s investigation team?”
“It’s a joint team! This is something everyone in humanity, beyond just the Empire, can participate in!”
“There’s no real need for me to do it.”
“…Is this how you treat your lover?”
“That’s just a contractual relationship.”
“…It’s a long-term contract. You could at least provide some basic service.”
Well, she is a long-term client. And since she’s quite generous in her treatment of me, I was willing to provide some simple service.
“I can do simple favors, but if it involves elves, it becomes more troublesome than the main job.”
The opponents were none other than K-Confucian style elves.
No matter how much of a pro I am, I didn't want to deal with them.
“……Do you know something?”
After falling silent for a long time at my refusal, Senior Loreliya suddenly curled the corners of her mouth into a confident smirk.
“…What is it?”
I felt a strange sense of unease. But I couldn't just not listen.
…Usually, an intro like that meant she was about to present something I couldn't refuse.
“The reason I took on this task is because I am a member of House Jeyka, and also a student of the Diplomacy Department…”
“Wait a minute. Weren't you in the Magic Department, Senior?”
“It’s my double major. Didn't you know?”
Of course I didn't.
I mean, what kind of pervert takes a double major at the Academy…
“…Right. I suppose you’ll be going to grad school too, then.”
“Hmm. I did consider it. But my family blocked me, saying I have to work for the house after graduation…”
“……”
Good heavens. To think my lover—even if a fake one—was someone who tried to voluntarily give up their humanity.
While I was momentarily stunned by this shocking truth, Senior Loreliya didn't give me a moment to breathe.
“Anyway. While I took the job as a Diplomacy student, there was another reason.”
“…Which is?”
“The Empire has granted House Jeyka a portion of the rights to the World Tree fragments obtained this time. If I handle this matter well, I can obtain a significant amount for myself…”
The way she looked at me with a suggestive gaze was truly fitting for a power player of the Empire, a Diplomacy student, the original work’s official villainess, and a terrifying person currently walking through the hellish landscape of a double major while contemplating grad school.
The warlocks appearing later were going to drop World Tree items anyway, but as a rule of thumb, the more items related to the World Tree, the better.
Moreover, since these were legally obtained, they could be used legally.
The day the Kingdom could use these to create magic swords like the Empire… considering our Magic Tower, that day would never come.
I’ll just have to secretly negotiate with Old Man Derf later and ask him to forge a few for me.
Since the Kingdom’s Magic Tower is so incompetent, I can’t even use things legally even if I bring them in legally.
Honestly, about 30% of the feud between Leon and Dale is probably the fault of the Leon Royal Magic Tower.
Anyway, as soon as I followed Senior Loreliya to the joint investigation team…
“You wouldn't come when I was begging you…”
Uncle Aeryun, whom I met again, was glaring at me with eyes full of resentment.
“I was the one who called him. Do you have a problem with that, Junior?”
“…Of course not.”
However, in public, she was a senior as high as the heavens. In private, she was the daughter of Duke Jeyka, who was two-timing with the Imperial Family, and I was the talent she had summoned.
Therefore, there was nothing Uncle Aeryun could do to me.
He could only send resentful glares my way… but that happened often enough that I just brushed it off.
As time passed, just as I’d heard from Boradori, the elves arrived exactly after the appointed time.
That is a sophisticated psychological tactic unique to elves; since high-ranking nobles often arrive exactly on time, the elves deliberately arrive a little late to prove they are superior.
“Forgive us for being a little late. We had urgent business to attend to.”
Even so, the elves brushed it off with a mere verbal apology.
It was the attitude of: We, who are older, are a bit late; what are you youngsters going to do about it?
It was the very essence of a K-Confucian kkondae. I wanted to give an MZ-style retort about how there’s no set order for who goes to the grave first, but I held back.
Because this time, I desperately needed that K-Confucianism.
“You have plenty of time, yet you pretend to be busy?”
“What?”
At my cold tone, the elves' expressions crumpled harshly.
Given their mindset, they probably looked like they were thinking: How dare this brat, whose hair isn't even dry yet, utter such nonsense just because an elder is a little late?
“……”
However, they began to feel doubtful one by one as they saw the High Elf at the very front—the eldest of the elves—remaining silently tight-lipped.
“Why…”
Finally, after a long silence, the High Elf at the front opened her mouth.
Her face was filled with confusion.
“A-Are you here, Lady Irin?”
“Your speech is so stiff. I told you to call me comfortably like Yenika does.”
That’s right.
Fight fire with fire; fight kkondaes with a bigger kkondae.
If the opponents are old fogeys who care about age, you just have to bring out someone from their generation.
The ultimate weapon against elves, the Super Fire…
No, the effect of Leon’s Ancestor was powerful.
“……”
“……”
“……”
All the elves kept their mouths shut, merely reading the room.
Their expressions were so identical to the 'reading the room' emojis I’d seen in my past life that I had to struggle to hold back my laughter.
“Hmm. So the warlocks got their hands on some of the ancient World Tree saplings?”
“That is what we suspect.”
“To think you didn't take me along for something so interesting…”
The Ancestor, after listening to the explanation from the High Elf named Yerisha for a while, looked at me resentfully.
Well, the Wood Style Rangers were pretty awesome.
“I didn't know either. When I got there, Daisy was already busy logging.”
“Uh. Hmm. Is that so?”
When I told her the literal truth, the Ancestor shriveled up at the mention of Daisy’s name.
“……?”
The High Elf seemed a bit bewildered by the sudden change.
It seemed our Ancestor had no intention of revealing her past of being dog-walked by a magic sword.
“Anyway, how long are you going to keep using formal speech? I told you I’m friends with your younger sibling.”
“I apologize, Lady Irin. That child, Yenika, is quite immature…”
“Hey, a thousand years is close enough to be friends! So a few hundred years is…”
“How could we possibly…”
A question suddenly occurred to me.
I’d heard that ordinary elves have a maximum lifespan of over a thousand years.
And the High Elf before me, Yerisha, was one of the prospective students set to enroll in the Academy representing the elves.
In other words, she was at an age where she was just being recognized as an adult among High Elves.
That’s probably why the other elves, who were presumably hundreds of years old, were treating the much younger-looking Yerisha with such deference.
The problem was that our Ancestor was the daughter of the man who founded the Kingdom.
Meaning, she was born only a few hundred years ago.
So why was the High Elf treating her with such extreme respect?
“Um. Is Lady Iphriti doing well?”
“Ah, Mom? She said she was going to sleep while I went out to play.”
“I-I see.”
The reason was simple.
It was because she was the child of a Dragon.
Simply put, there was the fear of the powerful existence that is a Dragon.
But if you think about it in terms of K-Confucianism… it was probably more because the family tree was completely tangled.
While a High Elf is considered an adult at a thousand years, a Dragon’s lifespan is roughly ten thousand years.
Even High Elves have a massive age gap that forces them to tuck their tails, but since Irin was a daughter born to a human in the Dragon's later years, she was difficult to deal with.
In human terms, would it feel like an aunt who is about 20 years younger than you?
Well, it didn't matter.
Since the eldest High Elf was acting like that, the other elves followed suit.
I just needed to maintain the initiative and lead the direction as I desired.
Or so I thought.
“Hieee!”
“……”
How did it end up like this?
I really don't know.